The Odisha Private Engineering College Association (Opeca) and student body BPUT Students Protection Council (BSPC) on Monday, 12 December 2016 questioned the criteria being followed for granting autonomy.

The Odisha Private Engineering College Association (OPECA) and student body BPUT Students Protection Council (BSPC) on Monday, 12 December 2016 questioned the basic criteria being followed for granting autonomy to five private institutes under Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT).

OPECA in a memorandum addressed to Sanjay Das Burma, Skill Development and Technical Education Minister, sought modification of the eligibility criteria for granting autonomy. As per the 15 point guidelines of the government, an institute should have at least 85% placement record in the last three years to be eligible for autonomy.

Binod Dash, OPECA secretary, said the government guidelines are contradictory and impossible to follow. Even premiers IITs don't have 85% placement records. Odisha government has put an impossible-to-meet point. Such a situation will only create problems for the concerned colleges.

He also said that Section 15 of the guidelines contradicts Section 1. Colleges have to strictly follow the government guidelines under Section 5 (i) of the guidelines as regards fee structure to get autonomy.

Biplab Prakash Mohanty, BSPC president said that the experts who recommended names of the colleges never followed the minimum criteria of adhering to government fee structure. Therefore, an action plan must be constituted to probe the suspicious nexus between colleges and the officers of the committee.

Sanjay Singh, Secretary of Skill Development and Technical Education said that government will examine the matter and guidelines.